Mortal, I have room to sprawl nowadays so I can break out my Commodore 64 and stuff Russian synths into pump organs, but in the tightest pinch all you want is FruityLoops and a keyboard with dials and faders. There's really no need for anything else.
Are you drumming or trying to fit a Rhodes in there? Vocal booth?

If I needed to go to like 6 basic elements, I'd choose (and ignore um if you are all beyond this)-

Hardware

1. M-Audio Audiophile (or a Delta if you're using a lot of the old in out)
2. Keep my Yamaha An1-x (I never use its sounds, but it has pretty good action, a few dials, 2 mod wheels, and a pressure sensitive ribbon controller.)
If you're in the market, check out an M-Audio Axiom

extra credit
7. throw in an FXpansion (?) plugin set because it has athing that lets you play with sound location

Those are the elements I find a use for in maybe 90% of my toying about.
I betcha any dirtiness or warmth you require (on an amateur level. Not some hardcore Pink Floyd shit) can be replicated using virtual effects and plugins.
People always like to say Fruityloops sounds flat. Lacks warmth. Naw man, Fruityloops sounds like nothing. The people who use it sound flat and lack warmth.
Just work those plugins and toy with eq. I'm not even a good mixer. I'm pretty sloppy and terrible.

If you absolutely have to throw some "analog warmth" on, you can pick up a tube based pre-amp for like a hundo. Pass whatever you want through there. I used to run a guitar through one, but since I sold that off I never even use the pre-amp. It sits in a box.

I taught for a while. Now I borrow money and look through textbooks and post on the internet like a nerd to cut the monotony of being trapped inside.

The bladerunner soundtrack is the best thing ever. I'd be afraid to touch it.

Mortal, I have room to sprawl nowadays so I can break out my Commodore 64 and stuff Russian synths into pump organs, but in the tightest pinch all you want is FruityLoops and a keyboard with dials and faders. There's really no need for anything else.
Are you drumming or trying to fit a Rhodes in there? Vocal booth?

If I needed to go to like 6 basic elements, I'd choose (and ignore um if you are all beyond this)-

Hardware

1. M-Audio Audiophile (or a Delta if you're using a lot of the old in out)
2. Keep my Yamaha An1-x (I never use its sounds, but it has pretty good action, a few dials, 2 mod wheels, and a pressure sensitive ribbon controller.)
If you're in the market, check out an M-Audio Axiom

extra credit
7. throw in an FXpansion (?) plugin set because it has athing that lets you play with sound location

Those are the elements I find a use for in maybe 90% of my toying about.
I betcha any dirtiness or warmth you require (on an amateur level. Not some hardcore Pink Floyd shit) can be replicated using virtual effects and plugins.
People always like to say Fruityloops sounds flat. Lacks warmth. Naw man, Fruityloops sounds like nothing. The people who use it sound flat and lack warmth.
Just work those plugins and toy with eq. I'm not even a good mixer. I'm pretty sloppy and terrible.

If you absolutely have to throw some "analog warmth" on, you can pick up a tube based pre-amp for like a hundo. Pass whatever you want through there. I used to run a guitar through one, but since I sold that off I never even use the pre-amp. It sits in a box.

I taught for a while. Now I borrow money and look through textbooks and post on the internet like a nerd to cut the monotony of being trapped inside.

The bladerunner soundtrack is the best thing ever. I'd be afraid to touch it.

i dont really play guitar
my setup as of right now is rather simple
just a laptop and a pos midi keyboard
if i want to sample vinyl i just plug into the headphone jack

waves diamond bundle is a 'mastering' must
sooo many good plug ins ....find it back channel

my room is rather small what im going for now is being able to have my laptop my desktop pc my keyboard and 1 turntable all accessable without having to move shit around

Tue Apr 27, 2010 4:26 pm

Raoul DeGroot

Joined: 30 Apr 2009
Posts: 2437
Location: Son Quest

That's a pretty Detroity clip.

Does the Waves Diamond bundle have those V-series plugs (vintage sounding eqs and compressors). I'm waiting for those to get into the wild before I install waves again.

I've noticed most people don't pile the mastering fx on the fly. Why is that? It's changed my process immensely since I started doing it. It's a more sculpty, interwoven type of activity.

I'm going to come out and say that I think Reason has been terrible for bedroom producers. Its group of instruments/samples and the beat building strategies it encourages really leaves a trace, in my mind anyway. I use it really sparingly. Mostly I just wish I could load those refills into a generic sampler vst.

Luke Vibert is nearly 100% Reason nowadays. And it ruined him.

Tue Apr 27, 2010 6:55 pm

AdamBomb

Joined: 05 Mar 2004
Posts: 3183
Location: Louisiana

Raoul DeGroot wrote:
I've noticed most people don't pile the mastering fx on the fly. Why is that? It's changed my process immensely since I started doing it. It's a more sculpty, interwoven type of activity.

I'm going to come out and say that I think Reason has been terrible for bedroom producers. Its group of instruments/samples and the beat building strategies it encourages really leaves a trace, in my mind anyway. I use it really sparingly. Mostly I just wish I could load those refills into a generic sampler vst.

Luke Vibert is nearly 100% Reason nowadays. And it ruined him.

In defense of Reason. I use very little of Reason's stock sounds. I even sample each note off of keyboards and make my own refills for bass, etc. What I like is the sequencer and I can automate effects and sample manipulation. You can also rewire Reason to Reaper and use VSTs as you are producing. Often times, I will use effects on samples using VST's prior to chopping them and loading them in Reason. I like its sequencer and ease of manipulating the blocks on the sequencer grid. I've learned a lot from its simulated cabling interface. You can get real geeky with how you manipulate instruments to react off of each other in a manner that is not as intuitive as editing individual tracks in a multitracker.

Tue Apr 27, 2010 7:27 pm

Raoul DeGroot

Joined: 30 Apr 2009
Posts: 2437
Location: Son Quest

Ah that is true. The options to route CV and sound signals from just about anything to anything is pretty unsurpassed. You can get some cool reactive stuff going on. Almost Max MSP like.

Tue Apr 27, 2010 7:42 pm

mortalthoughtsLAME KID

Joined: 12 Dec 2002
Posts: 11616
Location: MI

im not sure what the diamond bundle i had had in it
i lost everything in a hd crash on my desktop pc

Tue Apr 27, 2010 7:44 pm

mortalthoughtsLAME KID

Joined: 12 Dec 2002
Posts: 11616
Location: MI

Raoul DeGroot wrote: That's a pretty Detroity clip.

Does the Waves Diamond bundle have those V-series plugs (vintage sounding eqs and compressors). I'm waiting for those to get into the wild before I install waves again.

I've noticed most people don't pile the mastering fx on the fly. Why is that? It's changed my process immensely since I started doing it. It's a more sculpty, interwoven type of activity.

I'm going to come out and say that I think Reason has been terrible for bedroom producers. Its group of instruments/samples and the beat building strategies it encourages really leaves a trace, in my mind anyway. I use it really sparingly. Mostly I just wish I could load those refills into a generic sampler vst.

Luke Vibert is nearly 100% Reason nowadays. And it ruined him.

i usually route reason into ableton via re wire
a pain in the ass but its nice to have vsts available to use with reason

i just wish i could get rebirth working w/ vista why they stopped developing it is beyond me

im also very ad.d. the lack of knobs to turn and all that stuff makes me bored sometimes